Resource Parents

In an attempt to expand the distribution of materials and to increase awareness of community resources, the Parent Education Program designed the Resource Parents Program. This is a “grassroots” initiative that won the first annual Award for Innovative Use of Federal Funding from Georgia Department of Human Resources in 2002. In 2003, the Parent Education Program Manager was asked to present the model at the annual DHR Symposium in Atlanta for possible replication by other counties.

This program involves the training of identified parents in Whitfield and Murray counties who have good communication skills and good parenting skills. Each Resource Parent is given a bookcase filled with free and inexpensive materials to be shared in their communities. One of the Resource Parents is bilingual. Resource Parents are able to share information and make referrals to people who rarely, if ever, come in contact with agency providers.

Outcomes: Isolated and hard-to-reach families access resources that improve their quality of life.

Program Statistics: During 2013 the Resource Parents provided information and referrals to 2249 adults and 313 teenagers.